1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a geographic location referencing system and to a system, method and computer program product for automatically providing informational services to users based on their geographical location.
2. Related Art
The Internet has revolutionized the way people acquire information. Seemingly limitless volumes of data are now instantly available to users from their homes, offices, schools and libraries. Portable devices of various types including portable computers, personal data assistants, wireless communication devices (i.e. cellular phones) and in-vehicle navigation and computer systems can or will be used to access the Internet from any location.
Currently, services offered on the Internet do not cater to mobile users. In fact, it is often cumbersome to interact with current Internet services using portable devices due to the interactive nature of on-line sessions that generally require substantial user input. This can raise safety concerns, for example, in automotive Internet access devices. What is needed therefore, is a system and method that provides Internet services to mobile users with reduced user input requirements. In addition, what is needed is a system and method that provides Internet services to mobile users that are customized according to each user's geographical location.
Further, what is needed is a system and method for providing a geographic location referencing system that can be easily adapted to provide automated Internet services based on location. One such referencing system that can be used with the present invention is described in the above referenced related patent application, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,839,088 ("the '88 patent"), entitled "Geographic Location Referencing System and Method". The '88 patent and the present patent application are commonly owned.
The '88 patent describes a geographic location referencing system that has an addressing scheme that allows a location to be uniquely addressed using proprietary names unique to a geographical area. The geographic location system is contrasted with prior systems that are not suitable for Internet related services. Such systems include geodetic latitude and longitude, Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM), Military Grid Reference System (MGRS), World Geographic Reference System (GEOREF), Maidenhead, Trimble Grid, Trimble Atlas, and Thomas Brothers Detail.
These prior systems can generally be divided into two categories: global and local. The global systems, such as geodetic latitude and longitude, UTM, MGRS, GEOREF, Maidenhead, and Trimble Grid, use a scheme that subdivides the globe into areas of increasing resolution, until a particular location is properly identified. Thus each location address is referenced to the global system, allowing for the easy comparison of two location addresses. However, the addresses tend to be complicated, cumbersome, and unrelated to the real world, increasing the complexity of these systems.
The local systems, such as Thomas Brothers paper mapping systems, provide a technique that assigns location addresses based on association with a geographic region or physical map pages, with every location identified with only one region. The local systems are suitable for use in connection with a physical map. However, such local systems are difficult to use with respect to a more global or electronic system, as there is no simple way to convert a local address into a global address, and the local address is not recognized in the global systems.
Location technology has been significantly impacted by the wide availability of Global Positioning Systems (GPS), which are operated by the United States Department of Defense to provide worldwide navigation, position location, and precision timing services. GPS comprises a global network of satellites that interact with a controller coupled to a GPS receiver, allowing the controller to precisely determine its location. This location is typically output from the GPS receiver as latitude and longitude numbers, which are cumbersome for users to understand and use. A GPS receiver is sometimes coupled with additional capability that allows the raw latitude/longitude numbers to be converted into a more useful and usable format. See, eg., Sprague et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,422,814; Inoue, U.S. Pat. No. 5,289,195; and Yamashita, U.S. Pat. No. 5,471,392. However, even with these enhancements, a problem with these systems is that they are still difficult to use by persons who are unskilled in the use of location referencing systems. Another problem is that these systems are unwieldy because they still retain their global character. Still another problem with these systems is that they are not readily adaptable for use with computer networks such as the Internet.
Private commercial tracking systems in use today provide the ability to automatically track the location of, for example, a fleet of trucks, e.g. see U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,155,689; 5,299,132; 5,398,190; 5,454,027; 5,513,111; and 5,519,621. These patents are all related to a commercial vehicle locating and communicating system that uses either a cellular network or a GPS system for tracking and locating vehicles.
The problem with these proprietary systems is that they are very complex, expensive and limited to very specific functions. What is needed is a referencing system that can be used with a minimum amount of reading, scrolling, and searching, and with a limited number of keystrokes for data entry. In addition, what is needed is a user-friendly, truly local addressing system that is easily convertible to a known global system for wide-range concerns. Further, what is needed is a flexible system and method that can be used to automatically provide mobile users with relevant information customized for their current location. Additionally, what is needed is a system and method that caters to mobile Internet users by providing customized services based on geographic location.